To Enter God's Promises, or pass away?
By Trevor Davis
6-26-2022
www.SoundingTheAlarm.com

This is a simple message. One who calls upon the Lord, will either succeed and enter the promise of God by faith, or they will fall aside and perish outside the will of God. It is either or.

The children of Israel that were delivered from the tyranny of the King of Egypt and went out into the wilderness were in a testing ground. They saw God's works for forty years. There were only two of that great crowd of religious people that actually entered the land of promise. All the others died not receiving the promise. These things are written so those who would live after their failure would learn and receive instruction from the Spirit of God how to avoid this pitfall of death.

Forty years was a good amount of time to decide to allow God to change one's heart into a believing heart. Forty years was a time to grow in faith. But note how the fact is that only two made it. Joshua and Caleb and it was because their heart was totally completely entirely after the Lord. The others---not so. Now we only read and hear about their godless faithless example of unbelief, disobedience, foolishness, idolatry, rank rebellion, and horrible murmuring they dared say against God. God hates that. They spoke with forked tongues. They were double minded and never received what God promised therefore. This is a big lesson to learn. This is not likely to be heard in the church land of blind followers and their cane handling blind guides.

Yet, here we are in the last of days, and God's call has continued to call for repentance. “Come follow Me. Learn from Me. Seek Me and live.” It is not enough to know about God. You must know Him. It is not right to give God and Jesus smooth warm words of affection that stem from a divided heart that loves the world and the things He hates. This will end up in the grave where the worms die not as Jesus says.

Look at all the things God had done for that dead crowd buried in the wilderness. They saw Him outstretch His holy arm. He split the Red Sea, they walked through it on dry ground. The Egyptians tried to follow them but the sea waves crashed in upon them. They ate special food that dropped from above on a daily basis. It was sweet like wafers of honey. Yum. They drank water from a Rock that followed them. If they had understanding, they would have known this was figurative of the ROCK Jesus Christ who gives His flesh and blood as good food and drink. With a promise of never thirsting again.

Oh, there is so much that God did for that crowd. They were set free at an appointed time. God's glory was near in a cloud by day and fire at night. He met their needs. They had a promise from God. Their clothing endured the time and heat of the day without wearing out. God provided. He always does as He does for birds and other creatures, even clothing the fields in beauty array more so than Solomon's.

God is the same today. He does not change. His Word is forever settled in heaven. Jesus is the same today and forever as well. We can know Him. We can hear His voice, that is, if we are His sheep.

Those who failed the test in the wilderness were given the chance to succeed. Yet their foolish hearts always erred and they never learned the ways of the Lord. They chose things He delighted not. They were double-minded and therefore, did not receive what God had promised them.

Is there something to learn here? Yes, we are told so.

I love to read the chapters of Hebrew 3-4. These texts tell us they could not enter in because of unbelief and disobedience. We are told in John 3 that the wrath of God abides on those who do not obey Jesus. That is, those who are not persuaded or convinced by Him. We are to told to “consider” Jesus the Apostle and high priest of our confession. To consider is to esteem, or perceive. The ho hum cavalier attitude of the religious is offensive to God. He hates it. If that attitude is not changed He will actually close off revelation and illumination to that person. Isaiah 29:10-13 state this and Jesus confirmed it as written in the gospels. See, God is either concealing or revealing. But when people walk in the unbelief, disobedience, double-mindedness, idolatrous, sensual, spiritually ignorant and such, they will never get it. God sware in His wrath, “they shall not enter My rest”. There you go. This is a big deal. A very very serious matter in deed.

Reading through this account in 1 Corinthians 10 is vital. There the sins and weights of iniquity are discussed. Isn't it interesting that Hebrews 12 follows the “faith chapter” of chapter 11?

Therefore, since we also have such a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us
(chapter 11 the people of faith)
let's rid ourselves of every obstacle and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let's run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking only at Jesus, the originator and perfecter of the faith...

I am convinced the great weight and sins that easily beset professing Christians is non-faith. Unbelief. No faith. Without faith, one can not please God. It is impossible. God calls those who believe Him His friend, as He did with Abraham.

We have to be careful who we align ourselves and associate. We are commanded by God to abstain from those of unbelief and unfaithfulness. 2 Corinthians 6:14-18. Unbelief spreads as a dangerous leaven puffing through a person's entire being spirit, soul and body. Everything they do, think, and say.
Look out! Can we say we believe when we speak contrarily? No. “As I have believed I have also spoken”. It is the spirit of faith. If one is encountering waves of emotions then they must learn to cast down imaginations and bring all their thoughts captive to the obedience of Jesus. It is written so. Shhh, bridle the tongue by the Spirit of God. Don't offend God with stupid foolish words that contradict what God has promised or is indicating. Walk by faith, not by sight. Ignore the waves and hold on to what God SAYS. “Hear My voice”, the Spirit says. “Harden NOT your hearts, as your forefathers, dead ones, did in the wilderness. They provoked Me and tested Me forty years despite all I did for them. I was grieved by that generation.” What a sad sad story. It is grieving. God went from grieving to outrage and He was right in so doing.

When we love God and Jesus, we do not want to do, think, or say anything that grieves Him. We want Him rejoicing over us. We want Him to declare, “well done”, “come into what I have prepared for you”. It is as though we can rejoice with the others in this “great cloud of witnesses”, who went before us succeeding and making God glad. I want that.

Hebrews 3-4; 11, 12.
1 Corinthians 10: 1-22
John 3:36 www.SoundingTheAlarm.com (end) (edit 6-26-2022)